Joe Dante on THE TINGLER

William Castle's craziest and most famous ballyhoo extravaganza unfolds in "PERCEPTO - Newest and most startling gimmick on the screen!"
Also one of the most complicated to install in theaters, although in recent years many revival bookings have duplicated the seat-buzzing thrills that made this a late-blooming classic.

[@CountWannabe]

One of the most fun movies to see. Wish I could've seen it when it first ran in the theatres.

[@SirSmoldham]

SUPER CLASSIC! If David Cronenberg had directed a remake of this for Dark Castle more than my head would have exploded.

[@jackgrattan1447]

The RED blood filling up in the BLACK & WHITE bath tub is STILL a very effective scare. Castle's screenwriter Robb White wrote a lot of PERRY MASON episodes.

[@stephengorin2685]

The bathroom scene with blood from the sink taps and in the bathtub was not shot in black and white. It actually was shot in color. All the bathroom fixtures were painted with a white paint that emulated white in a B&W film. If you look closely, you'll notice a distinct difference in the "color temperature" of the white objects in the bathroom scene. That's a giveaway that the scene was truly shot in color. For a long time the scene puzzled and amazed me. Then once when it was on television the difference in the "whiteness" of objects in the bathroom scene just jumped out at me. Subsequent viewings convinced me the bathroom scene was obviously in color and that used a clever trick to disguise that fact. Watch the film again and pay close attention to the character of white objects in the B&W footage and notice the change during the bathroom scene.

[@stormbringercoming8105]

Loved Matinee. A beautiful gem.

[@sachaput]

Loved this as a kid, naturally, and lost count of the number of times I saw it on the small B&W TV I had in my bedroom. Back in the '80s the Film Forum ran this and other Castle films as part of the summer series. They actually hooked up about a third of the seats in the theater so you'd get the same effect. People would check under the seats before hand to decide if they wanted to get the 'shock' or not. I went for it.

[@josephebacon]

Dad took me to see The Tingler during it's original run. Dad sat in one of the Percepto seats. When Vincent Price said to scream, on went the Percepto and Dad yelped...scared the YOU KNOW WHAT out of me!

[@Tchernobog]

wish they would show this in cinemas again with the seat trick

[@Mycroft9]

Revival cinemas like Film Forum in NYC have shown this and other William Castle films with fun recreations of the original gimmicks!

[@Brianf66999]

I saw this as a kid and I've been searching for it for years. Thank you so much!

[@kascnef]

Percepto precursor of dolby cinema

[@johnrunion5357]

i wish david cronenberg would remake the tingler.

[@eustacequinlank7418]

Then he could stop moaning about Alien remaking him... or something.

[@JOHNWLOUCKS]

I saw it on it's original run but our theatre in upstate New York didn't have the seats hooked up to vibrate.

[@madahad9]

John Waters tells a funny anecdote about seeing The Tingler where as a kid he would go to the theatre where it was screening and find one of the few sets that were wired and says he sat there all day watching the film and getting his ass buzzed. I have no recollection of seeing this. If I did it left no impression on me. I envy anyone who had the opportunity to experience these little audience participation gags. The only thing that we had as a kid was that "Sensor-round sound" which I never actually got to experience.

[@j.dragon651]

I was seven when I saw this in the theater. When the medicine cabinet opens up it says, Place Of Birth- Red Bank N.Y., Cause of Death -Fright. I could read that at seven no problem. I was born in Red Bank NJ. I wouldn't take a bath for a week until my mom forced me lol.

[@MB-vk8cv]

The medicine cabinet says New Jersey 2:23 not New York. I also live in NJ.